Informing the discussion around oil sands

Social Impact

April 8, 2015

Discussions about energy use are a lot like nutrition conversations. Both are often about changing our habits. And if they aren’t working for us, we usually change routines in order to achieve a better outcome.

March 20, 2015

Suncor’s president and CEO Steve Williams recently spoke at the inaugural Positive Energy Conference in Ottawa. Co-hosted by the Ivey Business School and the University of Ottawa, the event was attended by over 100 senior leaders from the energy industry, government, academia, aboriginal communities, NGOs and the non-profit sector.

Suncor’s involvement with the conference is just one more example of how we’re participating in conversations and collaborative initiatives that contribute to our shared energy future.

March 19, 2015

It seems every facet of Canada’s energy discussion is in constant motion. Development aspirations rise and fall with commodity prices. Ideas for producing energy cheaper, quicker and cleaner abound. And a steady stream of news articles, tweets and blog posts document it all.

February 6, 2015

Mining is big business outside the oil sands region too, especially in British Columbia. Shining the light on roles women play in the industry, is the six part video series called Living the Mining Dream. The videos share the stories of six women working on mining projects in the province. The women discuss their career paths and how they’ve overcome challenges of working in an industry traditionally staffed by men. The series is available in six separate videos or one full length option.

October 24, 2014

Guided by the ideas of Alfred Crosby in his book, Children of the Sun, Stan Muller’s video provides a short overview of how energy has developed over the years. With energy from the sun playing a major role, Stan takes us on a history lesson from the time when man-power built pyramids all the way to fossil fuel development today.

October 17, 2014

Climate change is a global issue with some countries routinely singled out for blame. Although China’s emissions are increasing on a per-capita basis, reports show that Americans and Europeans continue to produce more CO2 emissions per average person. Future Tense shines the light on how lifestyle counts when tallying world CO2 emissions.

October 9, 2014

Thanksgiving in Canada is a great time to reflect on those things which make our lives richer: family, friends, snow tires and the return of hockey season. While Canada’s oil sands probably don’t make too many top-ten lists, we think perhaps they should.

September 19, 2014

When you hear 'carbon emissions' you might assume someone’s talking about energy use or industry development, but you may be wrong. Carbon emissions can also come from food waste and one photographer is capturing it on film. Gregg Segal’s project, 7 Days of Garbage, showcases people among their weekly waste and is sure to make you think twice before throwing out that egg carton.

Oil Sands Question and Response (OSQAR) is a blog created by Suncor Energy to support constructive dialogue about the oil sands. In our weekly posts, we talk about the energy industry, environmental impact, tailings management and reclamation, water management and the social and economic implications of oil sands development.

Our oil sands operations are near Fort McMurray, Alberta, where we recover bitumen from oil sands through mining and in situ operations. The bitumen from both operations is then upgraded to refinery-ready feedstock and diesel fuel. More about the where and the what of the oil sands can be found on our oil sands resource page.